The Alathur Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (APMA) has asked the Tamil Nadu government to establish an Export Guidance Cell at Chennai, exclusively for the pharmaceutical industry in the state. In a letter addressed to the District Industries Centre, Kancheepuram, the Association has stated that such a cell would help increase export of pharmaceutical products from the state. It also maintained that this would also help the growth of the pharmaceutical industry in the state and attract Foreign Direct Investments (FDI).

This appeal has come close to its appeal to the state government to upgrade the Alathur Pharmaceutical complex into a Pharma Park, on the lines of the Pharma Park proposed by the Andhra Pradesh government at Vizag.

Exports of pharmaceutical products from Tamil Nadu aggregated Rs.800 crore in the last fiscal contributing 7 per cent of the national turnover. Currently, there is no Export Guidance Cell for any industry in Chennai. The Madras Export Processing Zone (MEPZ), the only Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in the state, has a guidance cell for members located in its premises. It is for the first time that the pharmaceutical industry in the state has called for establishing an exclusive Export Guidance Cell for enhancing the export potential of the industry.

The Alathur Pharmaceutical Complex is the first exclusive industrial complex for the pharmaceutical industry in the country. It was conceived in the early 80's, and houses quite a number of formulation manufacturers.

Further, it has asked the state Industry Department to appeal to the Health Department to consider the issue of preferential purchase by the Tamil Nadu Medical Service Corporation (TNMSC) to the manufacturers based in the state. This, it said, would help the Tamil Nadu government realize the much needed sales tax revenue. According to APMA, the problem of standard and quality of drugs supplied to the TNMSC could be solved by involving the Drug Control Administration (DCA), Tamil Nadu. TNMSC had voiced concern about the standard and quality of drugs supplied by the manufacturers based in the state.